Federal court says local GOP can sue to block some Republican candidates

The decision by the 11th Circuit Court of Appeals on Thursday comes just days after delegates at the state GOP convention passed a resolution calling on party officials to block Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger from qualifying as a Republican. Georgia GOP chair Josh McKoon said he won’t enforce the resolution if it conflicts with state law.

The court ruling stems from the Catoosa GOP’s attempt in early 2024 to block four county commission candidates — all Republicans who had won seats under the GOP banner.

After a state judge ordered the county’s election board to allow the four to qualify, the Catoosa GOP filed lawsuits in state and federal court to challenge the decision.

The Georgia Supreme Court rejected the party’s appeal last year without ruling on the merits of the case, while a federal judge dismissed a separate lawsuit, finding that the GOP group’s attempt was “not in the public’s best interest.”

But the three-judge appellate panel ruled that the party had standing and ordered the lower court to reconsider the constitutional claims, including whether requiring the GOP to qualify certain candidates violated its First Amendment rights.

The Georgia Republican Assembly and its allies hailed the ruling as a victory and signaled it could have implications for future efforts to block more mainstream Republicans from qualifying as GOP candidates.

“We are pleased that the Eleventh Circuit Court of Appeals has reaffirmed that political parties cannot be forced by politicians to deceive voters about their true associations and quality,” said Alex Johnson, the chair of the Georgia Republican Assembly.

Things to know

Credit: Arvin Temkar/AJC

Credit: Arvin Temkar/AJC

Good morning! We’re four days away from the primary election for the Public Service Commission.

Here are three things to know for today:

Use of force

A video of Savannah police officers’ rough takedown of a woman in a McDonald’s parking lot caused such a stir that it prompted Mayor Van Johnson to publicly criticize the department.

Today, Police Chief Lenny Gunther will have his say as he is scheduled to speak to reporters about that incident and other videos that have drawn community criticism.

Johnson, who is often mentioned as a potential Democratic candidate for statewide office, called for an investigation last week and said he has not gotten responses as quickly as he would have like from the the police department.

Gunther responded by writing an open letter to city residents this week, hinting that the department has taken some type of disciplinary action, including a possible firing. But Gunther said he couldn’t talk about it until today, citing a state law that requires records “related to the suspension, firing or investigation of complaints against public officers” remain secret until 10 days after the agency has presented the evidence to the officers involved.

“I understand the desire for swift action and answers,” Gunther wrote. “The Savannah Police Department is, and will remain, committed to holding ourselves accountable for all our actions.”

Gunther has been police chief since the end of 2022.

Tax talk

Credit: Adam Beam/AJC

Credit: Adam Beam/AJC

A bipartisan group of lawmakers on Thursday kicked off their campaign to do what is likely the most difficult thing in Georgia politics: convince the Republican-controlled state Legislature to raise a tax.

A special House committee led by Republican state Rep. Sharon Cooper of Marietta is spending the off season examining how much money smoking costs state taxpayers each year. Their goal is to highlight what advocates say is the roughly $500 million difference between how much Georgia collects in tobacco taxes versus how much it spends to treat tobacco-related illnesses.

Georgia hasn’t raised its tobacco tax since 2003, back when Republican Sonny Perdue was governor and Democrats still controlled the state House. Back then, lawmakers agreed to raise the tax to 37 cents per pack. Today, the average tobacco tax of other states is $1.97 per pack.

Raising Georgia’s tax by $1 would generate about $500 million per year after accounting for the inevitable drop in sales and increased black market activity, according to Andy Lord with the Georgia Society of Clinical Oncology.

State Rep. Ron Stephens would be happy with less than that. The Savannah Republican floated an idea of converting the tobacco tax from a sales tax to an excise tax. That way, the state could redirect the money for a specific purpose, such as paying for health care costs.

“If we do nothing more in this session than move away from sales tax to a total excise tax … it would have been a huge win,” he said.

What’s in a number?

Credit: TNS

Credit: TNS

Georgia is getting a new area code, and it got us thinking about how those three numbers that pop up on our phones represent a lot more than your location.

The North American Numbering Plan Administrator told state regulators this week that Georgia’s second oldest area code — 912, covering the coast — would soon be split to include the new 565 number.

Area codes ensure the country doesn’t run out of phone numbers. But more than that, they’ve been adopted as emblems of personal history. In the age of cell phones, area codes often follow you for the rest of your life as a signal to others of where you came from.

That’s one reason why people get upset with new area codes. Georgia’s first area code was 404. The 912 area code was added in 1954 along the coast. Georgia didn’t get another area code until 1992, when 706 was added in metro Atlanta. But so many people complained about losing their 404 number that the Public Service Commission ordered widespread adjustments.

These protests likely won’t happen this time, as the new area code will only apply to new phone numbers. The Public Service Commission says the new area code should ensure there are plenty of phone numbers in Southeast Georgia to go around for the next 24 years.

Listen up

The “Politically Georgia” podcast is off today. We’ll be back on Monday.

Have a question or comment for the show? Email us at politicallygeorgia@ajc.com or give us a call at 770-810-5297 and you could be featured on a future episode.

You can listen and subscribe to the show for free at Apple Podcasts, Spotify or wherever you get your podcasts.

Codifying DOGE

Credit: TNS

Credit: TNS

The U.S. House voted narrowly on Thursday to claw back $9.4 billion in funding previously approved by Congress for public broadcasting and foreign aid.

Four Republicans voted “no” on the legislation with Democrats, but six Democrats were absent and that was enough for the GOP to narrowly pass the bill 214-212. Georgia’s delegation split strictly along party lines with all nine Republicans in favor and all five Democrats opposed.

The legislation now goes to the Senate, which has about five weeks to act or the funding for NPR, PBS and international HIV/AIDS prevention programs will remain in place.

Today in Washington

Don’t take the bait

Credit: Mark Schiefelbein/AP

Credit: Mark Schiefelbein/AP

U.S. Sen. Raphael Warnock has been decrying President Donald Trump and Republicans’ efforts to slash spending on safety net programs while cutting taxes and boosting border security funding.

But he has also has been using these opportunities to warn party activists to keep their protests peaceful in light of Trump’s response to isolated vandalism and violence during protests in California, CNN’s Eva McKend reports.

She posted a video of Warnock earlier this week telling a crowd that he fears Trump is itching to invoke martial law by labeling protests as violent. He joins other Democrats warning supporters to keep demonstrations peaceful.

“He wants the story to be about police cars burning,” Warnock said. “Don’t burn any police cars. We need law enforcement. Every now and then we’ve got to challenge it, but we need law enforcement.”

Birthday parade

Credit: Rod Lamkey Jr./AP

Credit: Rod Lamkey Jr./AP

Most members of Congress have already flown home for the weekend after wrapping up votes on Thursday. But a few are sticking around Washington to help President Donald Trump celebrate his birthday on Saturday.

U.S. Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, R-Rome, will be in Trump’s presidential box to view the miliary parade to celebrate the U.S. Army’s 250th anniversary that also coincides with Trump’s 79th birthday.

“As a Nationalist, she is honored to attend,” a spokesman for the Rome Republican told us.

U.S. Rep. Rich McCormick, a Republican from Suwanee and a former Marine, told Politico he also plans to attend the festivities.

The seven other GOP members of Georgia’s delegation did not respond when we asked if they were planning to attend.

Shoutouts

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Before you go

Credit: TNS

Credit: TNS

California U.S. Sen. Alex Padilla was forcefully removed after he interrupted Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem’s news conference in Los Angeles. Georgia U.S. Sen. Raphael Warnock called it “deeply appalling” while U.S. Rep. Mike Collins, R-Jackson, blamed Padilla.

That’ll do it for us today. As always, you can send your best scoops, gossip and insider info to greg.bluestein@ajc.com, tia.mitchell@ajc.com, patricia.murphy@ajc.com and adam.beam@ajc.com.